The Aftermath aka The Chapter Loet Forgot
by Loet Kyra Wonde
Summary: Kind of an Arwith: Chapter Four and a half. Written at the request of a reviewer, it describes what happens after Legolas and Gimli's drinking game.


Disclaimer: I own _nothing_! …Except myself and the story!

Okay, people, this was a suggestion from cute little legolas: "I WISH YOU HAD WRITTEN A CHAPTER ABOUT THE AFTERMATH OF LEGOLAS'S AND GIMLI'S DRINKING GAME!" Well, I thought about it, and this is what happened. You have only her to blame for whatever craziness may ensue.

Faramir seated Eowyn at the table while Merry and Pippin argued over who would get the last Danish. Aragorn was digging a trench in the floor by repeatedly walking back and forth from buffet to table, serving Arwen every item of food to which she took a liking. Frodo climbed up onto his chair and seated himself next to Gandalf. "So," Sam began. "When should we wake them?" Nine bodies leaned over to observe the pitiful sight around the corner.

It was comical sight indeed. Gimli and Legolas had been unceremoniously dumped on the double bed after the previous night's round of drinking. Gimli was laying spread out on his back with his mouth open, snoring as loudly as was physically possible and sounding like a perpetually coughing horse. Legolas was perpendicular to him, lying on his stomach, arms curled under his head like a child who has stayed up past their bedtime. With his left side snuggled half under the line of pillows and the dwarf at the foot of the bed, it was all anyone could do to keep from snickering.

"Do you think we should rouse them yet?" Pippin asked. Aragorn shook his head. "Let's just leave them where they are. It's better for them to wake them up on their own anyway." Merry exclaimed, "It's been two days! Don't you think that's long enough?" "Not necessarily," said Frodo, leaning back, looking philosophical. "Once, at my aunt's house, my uncle got so pixilated, he was unconscious for almost six weeks." Faramir asked, "Really? How did that turn out?" "Let's put it this way. If I feel like letting myself go, that memory pops up, seeing him in his chair, with his face in the same plate of sugared fruit for a month and a half!" He shuddered at the thought while everyone else laughed.

Eowyn and Arwen walked into the room where Legolas and Gimli lay, still as catatonic as corpses. The only indication anyone had to believe they were still alive was Gimli's snores and… Well, Eowyn and Arwen would soon know.

Marveling that the pair hadn't even moved, woman and elf walked as quietly as they could. They replaced the plate of fruit and goblets of water that had been laid for them in the highly unlikely, yet still possible event that they would wake up and be hungry. They were about to tiptoe from the room when heard something similar to mumbling. They turned and listened. "Hmm?"

Legolas, with his head turned to the right, kept his eyes closed, but drowsily muttered, "Circus." Arwen and Eowyn looked at each other with amusement. Eowyn pressed one finger to her lips and crept towards him while Arwen sat down to watch. Her friend knelt down next to Legolas and murmured in a tired voice. "Where are you going?" "I'm going to the circus."

Arwen bit her lips to keep from chuckling while Eowyn continued her conversation. "You're going to a festival?" "Mm-hmm." "Can I come?" "No children allowed." Arwen was laughing without making any sound while Eowyn snickered. "When are you going?" "I'm going when the moon changes." They waited in anticipation of where this would go. She repeated, "Can I come?" "No adults allowed."

Tears were now flowing down Arwen's and Eowyn's cheeks, but they didn't dare laugh out loud. After she had calmed herself enough to speak without gasping for air, Eowyn asked, "Who are you going with?" "I'm going to take the rat." Eowyn was practically rolling on the floor, holding her stomach as the giggles broke through the dam. Arwen was gently kicking the floor with one foot, and laughed and panted for air until she couldn't breathe. Legolas was completely oblivious to it all.

Aragorn was discussing something with Faramir when a tall, lithe young woman with flaxen hair and freckles on her nose came running up to them in absolute hysterics. It took some time, but she finally got it through to them that the three children her brother was supposed to be watching had disappeared. The brother was running around outside trying to find them while his older sister was dismantling rooms doing the same.

After calling their names on several floors and startling several people, the trio was discovered in Legolas and Gimli's room. The little girl had taken to braiding Gimli's beard while the boy and infant bounced on Legolas's back, holding onto his hair and saying, "Giddy up, elfie."

Faramir agreed that they would have to be stopped, but neither he nor Aragorn could bring themselves to stop the children's games without watching for a while. It turned out that "a while" lasted for half an hour. But still, they had been found, they were unharmed, and the sleeping pair remained sleeping. It was an immensely entertaining thirty minutes.

Amidst numerous other occasions that involved sleep-talking and being poked and prodded, the pair slept like rocks. They didn't move, they didn't stir, and they certainly didn't wake. After sleeping for six days, it began to rain heavily. It rained without stopping or slowing. Everyone was feeling sleepy. Merry and Pippin were sitting in their chairs, nodding off while Sam read and Frodo sat on his bed, recording in his journal. Gandalf was in Faramir and Eowyn's room, exchanging anecdotes. Arwen was in her room while Aragorn paced about waiting for the girl he had sent for to bring Arwen's fruit and cheese. When she arrived, Arwen accepted the food with delight, but politely refused the water. Immediately afterward, a large crash was heard, and everyone looked out their doors. Legolas was standing in his doorway, after having loudly opened the door.

The elf looked terrible. His disheveled hair stuck out at odd places, his squinting eyes were red and tired, and the corners of his mouth hung down. He looked like an ad for death. He shuffled over to the slightly alarmed girl without moving his arms, poured some water into a goblet and drank greedily from the jug. He emptied the jug in one breath while stiffly padding back to his room with it. After a few exchanged glances, the rest of the group peeked into the room.

Legolas opened the door to his balcony, wandered out until he faced the wall, and fell forward at the waist, letting his forehead hit the wall and his arms hang. A few people poked their heads around the corner and looked at him. Pippin asked him, "Are you asleep or dead?" Legolas murmured numbly, "I'm too tired to be dead."

He stood there for three more seconds, looked inside the jug he was still holding to see that it was full, and walked inside. Dripping water onto the floor, he walked over to Gimli and poured the contents of the jug over his head. The dwarf lord sputtered awake while Legolas wringed out his long blonde hair. Eowyn left to get two blankets. Legolas opened the closet doors and began changing his clothes, causing Arwen to leave the room giggling.

When both elf and dwarf had changed and were sitting wrapped in blankets, the girl from before brought them both some tea to warm them up. The group sat around them. "So," Aragorn asked. "How do you feel?" Gimli answered. "My mouth feels like I swallowed a sheep." The girl opened the door to leave, and the hinges squeaked loudly. Legolas made an unusual sound that indicated displeasure. She opened the door a little wider. He made a louder sound. She walked through and closed the door. He groaned loudly in obvious pain. Once she was outside, her voice, along with that of a young man named Alec could be heard as he offered to carry the plate for her. Shortly thereafter, the sounds of falling, crashing, and yelping could be heard. Legolas and Gimli whimpered, massaged their temples, and shrank at the sound the disastrous noise until their heads could barely be seen. "Splitting headache," the elf muttered. His dwarf companion added, "Temporary blindness." "And the taste of burnt copper." Legolas made a thick smacking sound with his mouth to emphasize the point.

Aragorn looked at them and said, "I assume we won't be making this mistake again?" When no respond was drawn, Faramir asked his wife, "When should we tell them what happened while they were asleep?" Eowyn looked at Legolas, grinned wryly, and answered, "When the moon changes." Arwen quickly stifled a guffaw, and Legolas looked at them curiously.

Merry asked, "So who won?" Legolas and Gimli drew themselves to attention, pointed to the other with wide eyes, and answered in unison, "Him." Everyone laughed, except them of course, and Aragorn announced that they should be given some more rest. Everyone began filing out of the room while elf and dwarf crawled into the bed. They had almost drifted off to sleep when Pippin crept up to them and said, "The cooks announced this morning that they just mixed up a new type of ale. Do you want to try some later on?"

Pippin wouldn't tell anyone what had happened except that Legolas and Gimli had glared at him murderously. What followed, only those three knew. But promptly following Pippin's question, there was the sound of smacking, banging, yelping, and Pippin was bodily tossed from the room and the door slammed shut.


End file.
